Obama, one year later

An evaluation of the president's first year

It’s
been a focal point of violence since before the Roman Empire forcefully
expanded its borders to the region thousands of years ago. It’s been
witness to conquests and crusades, but also to somuch culture that’s helped shape the world.

In the lead-up to the 2008 election, it was also the focal point on the campaign trail for Barack Obama.

The
Middle East. Two wars raging — one, in Iraq, in need of scaling back,
and another, in Afghanistan, in need of ramping up, at least according
to Obama during his campaign.

In
July 2008, the then-presidential candidate said “combat troops” could
be out of Iraq by the summer of 2010. It would become the crux of his
campaign.

“I opposed the war in Iraq before it began,
and would end it as president,” Obama wrote in an op-ed piece published
in The New York Times that summer. He put a 16-month timetable on
withdrawing troops after he took office. Still, he cautioned, “As I’ve
said many times, we must be as careful getting out of Iraq as we were
careless getting in.”

Yes,
the war in Iraq continues. But on Feb. 27 of last year, President Obama
formally announced the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops, and a
“transition to full Iraqi responsibility” by Aug. 31.

The deadline was three months later than promised in his campaign, but at least it was a steadfast date.

“Let
me say this as plainly as I can: by August 31, 2010, our combat mission
in Iraq will end,” Obama said in a speech at Camp Lejeune in North
Carolina.

Still,
the president plans to keep 35,000-50,000 troops — down from roughly
140,000 — through 2011 to help train local troops through the
transition. Is this another “Mission Accomplished” moment, or will this
move actually help move toward accomplishing the mission? Hard to say.

Meanwhile,
the threat in Afghanistan has grown. In 2009, the combat there saw
nearly twice as many deaths (300) as Iraq (148) — yet the U.S. force in
Afghanistan is less than half that of the one currently occupying Iraq.

First
in a speech he gave in August 2007, and then reiterated again and again
on the campaign trail, Obama promised to deploy two additional brigades
to the country. Last month, he ordered an additional 30,000 troops to
the region.

When the build-up is complete by the end of this year, it will bring the total U.S. force in Afghanistan to around 100,000.